As
the first private manned spacecraft basks in its first flush of
triumph, scores of star-gazing earthlings are already stumping up big
bucks for out of this world vacations of the future.

A day after rocketship SpaceShipOne
on Monday won a $10-million prize aimed at kickstarting space tourism,
there appears to be no shortage of wealthy adventurers keen to be first
to blaze a trail into the galaxy.

Around
125 hard-line space junkies have already paid more than $100 000 for
tickets for a short trip on the world's first commercial spaceliners,
years before the first passengers will be ushered aboard.

"It
may seem like science fiction to some people, but its getting very
real," investment millionaire Nik Halik (35) said as he watched
SpaceShipOne blast into space to claim the $10-million Ansari X Prize.

"I'm
an absolute thrill seeker who's always been obsessed with space. I have
books of pictures of rockets that I began collecting when I was four,
and now I can't wait to ride in a real one," he said.

Halik has paid $105 000 to Virginia-based space travel firm Space Adventures
for his trip out of the Earth's atmosphere on a sub-orbital space
flight that the company says could take place as soon as 2007.

At his own expense, he has already undergone basic astronaut training, including zero-gravity acclimatisation, at Russia's StarCity space port and at a Russian air force base.

"Whatever
the cost, it's definitely worth it, this is a new frontier for mankind
and I've got a chance of being a part of it," he said.

The fringes of spaceLike
other sub-orbital space passengers, Halik hopes to set off on a journey
lasting around 90 minutes, about 15 minutes of which will be on the
fringes of space, the almost virgin territory pierced by SpaceShipOne
on Monday, winning the X Prize.

The stubby three-seater craft streaked to an altitude of 112 kilometers over California's Mojave desert
on the second of two space trips in five days, claiming its place as
the vanguard of a new generation of commercial spaceliners.

The
craft's designer Burt Rutan and even Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA) chief Marion Blakey hailed the craft's success as a historic
milestone that marked a new dawn of commercial space travel.

Further
distancing space tourism from science fiction, British airline magnate
Richard Branson last week announced he plans to launch a passenger
service to space by 2007 on his futuristic Virgin Galactic spaceline.

"Two
years ago people giggled at the idea of space tourism in the
foreseeable future, but we think it will be happening by 2007," said
Space Advenures' president Eric Anderson.

Space Adventures,
the only firm in the world taking paid reservations for sub-orbital
passengers, says it is in talks with Branson and several other
companies on tie-ups that would take their wander-lusting passengers to
space.

The
company is also in "serious discussions" with NASA and the FAA on how
to regulate and safely run the nascent space tourism industry,
officials said.

While
space experts warn that even with the success of SpaceShipOne, tourists
should not start packing their space suits just yet, some fans of
other-worldly travel have no doubts that their big day is near.

"I
have been fascinated with space travel from when I watched 'Star Wars'
and 'Star Trek' as a child," said would-be space tourist Adam Smith
(14).

"It
will revolutionise travel. We will be able to go to Paris for lunch and
the Pyramids for dinner," said the US schoolboy who has put down a
$1000 deposit on his flight of the future and is working to raise the
remaining $101 000 due ahead of his space flight.

Danish-born investment banker and former diplomat Per Wimmer (36) has also paid up and had been training for his mission in Russia. The success of SpaceShipOne has only served to fuel his passion.

"Some
people think I'm crazy and those close to me worry about my safety, but
commercial space travel is almost a reality and I'm determined to be
the first Dane in space," he said.

"There
is no doubt that its worth all the investment and the risk," he said.
"This is my biggest passion, my dream. I've always liked adventure
travel and now I want to go somewhere where I won't find a Coca-Cola
machine."